Crime and safety

In the last year, the growth of some crimes showed signs of a slowdown. The number of intentional homicides fell below 500 units, from 502 in 2013 to 475 in 2014, thus confirming the downward trend of the relevant ratio per 100,000 inhabitants. Reported robberies decreased to 64,5 per 100,000 inhabitants, while reported thefts increased, mainly due to the increasing number of domestic burglary cases, which have almost doubled over the last decade.

In 2013, criminal proceedings were initiated against 1,029 persons per 100,000 inhabitants, while 1,058 people saw their proceedings dismissed. Between 2006 and 2013, the most frequent serious crimes reported for which criminal proceedings were initiated against people aged 18 and over were theft and culpable injuries; the number of charges for stalking are also on the increase. Prison overcrowding is in sharp decline thanks to more alternatives to detention being adopted.

In 2014, 31.1 percent of homicide victims were women. Most of them knew their killers: 55 percent of them were killed by partners or former partners, 22.3 percent by another relative, 9 percent by some acquaintances and only 7 percent by unidentified offenders.

The perception of crime risk remains one of the main problems felt by citizens: after an improvement in 2014, the share of households declaring a high or fair perception of crime risk in their area increased significantly in 2015.